The Venture Bros.

The Venture Bros. is an animated action-comedy series airing as part of Adult Swim on Cartoon Network. Airing at 12:30 a.m. e/p and 3:30 a.m. during Adult Swim's Sunday block, it chronicles the adventures of two teenage boys, their super-scientist father, and their secret-agent guardian. The show is known for its developed plots and dry sense of humor. J.G. Thirlwell of Foetus fame scores the show.

The series is a spoof of the classic Hanna-Barbera action series Jonny Quest, with the Venture brothers taking the place of Jonny and Hadji. Dr. Venture is a caricature of Dr. Benton Quest, and Brock Samson is a testosterone-loaded, excessively-violent take on Race Bannon. It has been stated by the show's creators that the show also parodies Hardy Boys mysteries and comic super heroes. Oddly enough, one episode showed that Venture Bros. takes place in the same continuity as Jonny Quest. Show creator Jackson Publick (a pseudonym for Christopher McCulloch) was one of the main writers for the Saturday morning animated show The Tick; and Ben Edlund, creator of The Tick, has co-written one episode of Venture Bros. (Another Tick connection: Patrick Warburton, who played the Tick in the short-lived live-action series, provides the voice of Brock Samson.)

Characters

The Venture family

• Hank Venture (voiced by Christopher McCulloch): Teenage boy, one-half of the titular pairing. A mix between Jonny Quest and Fred of Scooby Doo fame. Tends to be more athletic than his brother. Always up for adventures and solving mysteries. Better at disguises than his brother, and can be rather naive. Prone to flights of fancy; Brock comments about him by saying, "it's like he channels dead crazy people."
• Dean Venture (Voiced by Michael Sinterniklaas): Teenage boy. Timid and selfless. The Hardy Boy to Jonny's Hadji. Always keen for adventures, but tends to flee at the first sign of bodily harm. Faints when he stands up quickly, and has a weak stomach. Slightly more rational than Hank, but still thinks badguys are toted away in sleeping bags, not body bags. Dr. Venture comments about him saying he's a bit "more effeminate" than his brother.
• Dr. Thaddeus S. "Rusty" Venture (Voiced by James Urbaniak): Father of the Venture twins. A "super-scientist," like his deceased father, the famous Dr. Jonas Venture, from whom he inherited his company, Venture Industries. Despite some ability in the field of the nebulously defined "super-science," is considered a failure by several characters. Frequently swallows diet pills and despises being compared to his late father. Has archenemies in the form of The Monarch and Baron Underbheit. It has been revealed that he never finished his studies and is not technically a doctor at all. Tends to dislike his sons, it is unclear if he actually loves them. He often suffers from nightmares where he, in one way or another, does away with his twin brother while still in the womb.
• Brock Samson (Voiced by Patrick Warburton): Bodyguard of the Venture family and agent with the Office of Secret Intelligence. Has a Level Eight (8), Class A license to kill, and an amazing zeal and ability in using it. Prefers to kill with his saw-toothed Bowie knife rather than firearms, although he once used his Dodge Charger to slaughter wave after wave of Monarch Henchmen. Loyal to the Venture family, and now seems to serve as a bit of a mentor and surrogate father for the boys.
• Dr. Jonas Venture (Voiced by Paul Boocock): Deceased father of Doctor Thaddeus Venture, and was one of the foremost scientists in the world. Created what is now known as Venture Industries and led the original Team Venture. His character is based on Doc Savage.

Villains

• The Monarch a.k.a. The Monarch Butterfly (Voiced by Chris McCulloch): Dr. Venture's nemesis, obsessed with Monarch butterflies, who raised him as a child. Longs to bring an end to Dr. Venture in as many ways as possible. Is evasive when asked why he seeks to harm Dr. Venture; it is implied that his only real reason is that he is Venture's self-proclaimed archenemy. Dr. Venture, in turn, barely seems to realize The Monarch exists most of the time. A former member of The Guild of Calamitous Intent, his base is a giant, flying cocoon.
• Monarch Henchmen (Voiced by Christopher McCulloch and others): The incompetent henchmen of The Monarch. There are many of them, with different body compositions and voices. They're all referred to by number (except for two named "Speedy" and "Tiny Joseph"). Often killed by Brock Samson. Most are disposable, but two seem to have become recurring characters: "Number Twenty-One," an obese pop-culture geek with a Star Wars fixation, and his friend "Number Twenty-Four," a tall, thin, dim-witted one. The Monarch and Dr. Girlfriend have an almost parental relationship with the henchmen, though Monarch is known to kill some of them himself on occasion.
• Dr. Girlfriend (Voiced by Doc Hammer): Sort of girlfriend to the Monarch. Previously worked for/loved the Phantom Limb, she bears a remarkable similarity to Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis. She has an unnaturally deep voice (yes, she's voiced by a man) which is also a parody of Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis' relatively low voice for a woman and her New England accent. Formerly known as Lady Au Pair and Queen Etherea. Arguably the brains behind the Monarch's operation.
• Baron Werner Underbheit (Voiced by T. Ryder Smith): Ruler of Unterland, a militant dictatorship. Wears a prosthetic, metal jaw. Enemy of Doctor Venture, mostly due to unresolved differences from their college days together (it's Venture's fault he has a prosthetic jaw; as he says, "In my country, a lab-partnership is a sacred trust. One is always supposed to look out for one's lab-partner! Venture did not..."). Associated with The Guild of Calamitous Intent. Is a parody of Doctor Doom
• Manservant (Voiced by Chris McCulloch): Baron Underbheit's long-time personal servant.
• Underbheit Henchmen (Voiced by Chris McCulloch): Henchmen to Baron Underbheit. They are far more disciplined than the henchmen of The Monarch, and they take pride in the fact that at the age of thirty-eight, they are executed.
• Phantom Limb (Voiced by James Urbaniak): Villain with invisible arms and legs. Member of the Guild of Calamitous Intent. It is hinted that he and Dr. Girlfriend used to be a couple.
• Jonas Venture, Jr. (Voiced by James Urbaniak): Dr. Venture's deformed twin, who was absorbed by Rusty in the womb. Has re-awakened and been freed from Rusty's body via surgery. Desperate to claim the life that was never his, and has the body of a baby. Seems to have made peace with Dr. Venture as of the end of the first season.

Friends/allies

• H.E.L.P.eR. (Voiced by Soul-Bot): The Venture family's personal helper robot. H.E.L.P.eR. is an acronym for Humanoid Electric Lab Partner Robot. Created by Dr. Jonas Venture to look after his son Rusty, and now assists Brock in looking after Dean and Hank. Capable, but emotionally unstable.
• Doctor Byron Orpheus (Voiced by Steven Rattazzi): An expert necromancer who rents a portion of the Venture Industries grounds and is friends with Dr. Venture. Unusually capable for a Venture associate. Seeks an archenemy of his own. Bears a resemblance to Doctor Strange with a voice similar to Vincent Price.
• Triana Orpheus (Voiced by Lisa Hammer): Dr. Orpheus' Goth-punk daughter. Has hair dyed purple, and is fairly friendly with the Venture Boys. Possibly the most down-to-earth character on the show, despite her father's tendency to dramatize. Dean Venture has a crush on her, and she at least tolerates him.
• Colonel Bud Manstrong (Voiced by Terrence Fleming): Colonel on the orbiting space station, Gargantua-1.
• Lt. Anna Baldavitch (Voiced by Nina Hellman): Lieutenant under Col. Manstrong on Gargantua-1. Her face is never shown, and it is implied that she is catastrophically ugly, in stark contrast to her shapely body.
• Mr. [Peter] White (Voiced by Chris McCulloch): A genius in his field and, more notably, an albino Caucasian. Works at Conjectural Technologies. Went to college with Venture and Underbheit. According to Billy Quizboy, Mr. White is "totally gay."
• Master Billy Quizboy (Voiced by Doc Hammer): A self-proclaimed boy genius. He is primarily known for his masterwork in the prosthesis field, but also excels at most other things. Works at Conjectural Technologies. Suffers from hydrocephalus.
• Colonel Horace Gentleman (Voiced by Chris McCulloch): Retired member and head leader of the original Team Venture. Walks around with a cane and has a voice similar to Sean Connery.
• The Action Man [Rodney] (Voiced by Chris McCulloch): Retired member of the original Team Venture. Primarily fights with handguns and sometimes his fists. He has constant bowel movements, which never seem to sway him. Married Major Tom's widow after Tom's tragic accident.
• Otto Aquarius (Voiced by T. Ryder Smith): Retired member of the original Team Venture. Exiled son of Atlantis, he is half-human and half-Atlantean which provides him with a greatly extended life-span. Most recently, he has converted to the Jehovah's Witnesses. The only pacifist in the original Team Venture.
• Kano (Unvoiced): Retired sumo-wrestler member of the original Team Venture. Master of the Martial Arts. Communicates by way of origami.
• Race Bannon (Voiced by Chris McCulloch): Agent in the Office of Secret Intelligence. Seemingly killed recovering the Goliath Serum from King Cobra's Snake-Men. Implied that he is the same Race Bannon from Jonny Quest, as his dying words to Brock Samson are "Tell Jonny I love..."

Others

• Roy Brisby (Voiced by Chris McCulloch): Manager/CEO of Brisbyland. Crippled in an accident that occurred during the construction of Brisbyland and now confined to a wheelchair. Wishes for Dr. Venture to clone him a new body.
• Professor Richard Impossible (Voiced by Stephen Colbert): Former Professor to Dr. Venture, Mr. White, and Billy Quizboy and founder of Impossible Industries, a major government contractor. A parody of Reed Richards of the Fantastic Four, an experiment with cosmic radiation gave him the ability to stretch his body like rubber, while his wife Sally, her brother Cody, and their mentally handicapped cousin, Ned, were freakishly transformed.
• Mandalay (Voiced by Charles Stewart Parnell): Roy Brisby's large bodyguard.
• Molotov Cocktease (Voiced by Mia Barron): Brock Samson's love interest. A Russian agent and a knife lover, like Brock. Unfortunately for Brock Samson, she wears a chastity belt.
• Major Tom (Voiced by James Urbaniak): A test pilot for the late Dr. Jonas Venture. Died while testing a flying saucer in the Bermuda Triangle.
• Steve Summers (Voiced by Chris McCulloch): A former astronaut. He had six million dollars spent on him to make him bionic after he almost died when his test ship broke up.
• Sasquatch (Voiced by Chris McCulloch): A.K.A. Bigfoot. Steve Summers' life partner who gave him a new hope to never go through government missions ever again.
• Tiny Attorney (Voiced by Chris McCulloch): A southern gentlemen prosecutor during the Monarch's trial and #3 on The Guild of Calamitous Intent's Most Wanted List. Abducted during the trial by the Guild's Strangers, led by the Phantom Limb.

Episodes

1–00: Pilot — The Terrible Secret of Turtle Bay (Written by: Jackson Publick) – Dr. Venture goes to New York to show off his latest invention at a United Nations symposium. Meanwhile, his two sons decide to have an "adventure" in the Big Apple, while Brock goes off for some R&R. And then there's the issue of a ninja who seems to have an altogether unhealthy interest in Dr. Venture's newest gadget... (Note: the pilot shows the charaters in a rather different light, and is currently not scheduled as part of the show's run)

1–01: Dia de los Dangerous! (Written by: Jackson Publick) – The Venture family travels to Tijuana for a lecture given by Dr. Venture (who also meets up with a Doctor Ernesto Guevara) at the University of Mexico. The Monarch also travels to Mexico to find his long lost adoptive parents (Monarch butterflies). When The Monarch discovers the Ventures in Mexico, he wreaks havoc on them that leaves the brothers trapped in the Monarch's clutches, Dr. Venture without his kidneys and Brock...dead?

1–02: Careers in Science (Written by: Doc Hammer) – After a brief introduction to 'Gargantua 1', a space station built by Jonas Venture with his son, the Ventures travel to the station to repair an unknown 'problem' (as is indicated by a red 'problem' light). The boys are told stories of a phantom by Bud Manstrong, while Venture sets out to fix whatever the problem is. H.E.L.P.eR. is accidentally knocked into a laundry chute and covered in rags, and beaten by the boys (thinking he is the phantom). Brock, meanwhile, is making the moves on Manstrong's love and apparently ugly partner Anna Baldavitch (whose face is never seen) after being nearly sucked out (indeed, he was actually in space itself) of the shuttle, which infuriates Manstrong to no end-despite him doing absolutely nothing to move the relationship on, even though he and Baldavitch seem to be the only two regulars on board. Venture eventually needs repairs made to the ship outside, and Brock and Manstrong go out to repair it, but Manstrong accidentally infuriates Brock by merely touching him and is beaten to near-death. Dr. Venture all this time has been having feelings of inadequacy and having hallucinations of his father with the ship as a catalyst. After arguing with the memory of his father, who insists HE didn't make the problem, Dr. Venture finds in the wiring one of his old, melted cowboy figures from decades ago-he had indeed been the reason there was a problem! With Manstrong being toyed with by Baldavitch as he hangs outside in space without feeling in the right side of his body, the boys and Brock reunite with Dr. Venture, who slips out of his spacesuit which he had urinated in earlier-but the urine begins to drip onto the controls, causing the problem light to light up again...

1–03: Home Insecurity (Written by: Jackson Publick) – As Brock leaves for his sabbatical in the woods, Dr. Venture invents a robot named G.U.A.R.D.O. and builds a panic room that will protect the family in Brock's absence. The robot is completed, but Venture sleeps before loading the friendly file software. The simultaneous attacks of The Monarch and Baron Underbheit test both security measures, as the robot cannot recognize the Venture family. While the Monarch's henchmen bicker with Underbheit’s henchmen over who gets dibs on Venture's defeat, Monarch and Underbheit try to come to an agreement. Meanwhile, Brock befriends the strangest couple in the woods. H.E.L.P.eR runs away in a fit of jealousy upon discovering Dr. Venture's plans for the G.U.A.R.D.O. robot.

1–04: The Incredible Mr. Brisby (Written by: Jackson Publick) – Dr. Venture is hired at Roy Brisby's theme park, on the charge of cloning a new body for Brisby, who suffered a stroke while under a ride that went awry. He refuses, and is bagged by Brisby's "com-panda", Lili ("won from David Bowie in a trivia contest"), while Brock is drugged. The boys, meanwhile, annoyed at not being able to go to the theme park, are kidnapped by the Orange County Liberation Front, who wishes to destroy Brisby's empire and reclaim the county's small-town charm. Brock wakes up to find himself under the care of his old flame Molotov Cocktease, and after a brief and...exciting...reunion the two head to Brisbyland. Venture is meanwhile drugged himself into telling how to clone a body but thanks to the diet pills he reguarly consumes is babbling nonsense. Eventually havoc reigns at the headquarters Dr. Venture and Brisby are stationed at as the OCLF attack and Brock and Molotov come to complete their objectives. Venture and the boys are saved by Brock amidst the chaos, and Brisby, who is attempting to escape with Lili, finds Cocktease blocking his escape. Eventually it is learned that Cocktease is returning the panda...to Bowie.

1–05: Eeney, Meeney, Miney... Magic! (Written by: Doc Hammer) – Dr. Venture's latest invention has the family interested, not to mention trapped! Their new neighbor, the strange Dr. Orpheus, may be the only one who can help them escape. Meanwhile, Dean falls for Orpheus's daughter while Brock falls for his old flame: Molotov Cocktease.

1–06: Ghosts of the Sargasso (Written by: Doc Hammer and Jackson Publick) – Doctor Venture, short on money, searches for a lost flying saucer lying underwater in the Bermuda Triangle that his father had created, but didn't patent, because he scrapped the concept after a test pilot by the title of Major Tom died flying it. The opening shot of the show almost quotes David Bowie's songs Space Oddity and Ashes To Ashes word for word. Dr. Venture's disrespect for the dead arises Major Tom from the dead to haunt the Venture's ship. Meanwhile, a pirate ship ambushes Venture's ship, the X-2.

1–07: Ice Station Impossible (Written by: Jackson Publick) – Doctor Venture, Mr. White and Master Billy get a job working for Professor Impossible, a master genius, as a "think tank" for Impossible Industries, which is a research facility, often used by the government, for things that are thought of as impossible. Meanwhile, when a government agent, none other than Jonny Quest bodyguard Race Bannon, tries to steal an illegal serum from a terrorist group while on an airplane, the serum accidentally gets knocked out of his hands and lands on Hank Venture, miles below, on the ground. The container breaks, and some of the serum infects Hank. The serum, known as the Goliath Serum, was made by Richard Impossible during the Vietnam War; it leaves Hank with less than a day before he becomes a human bomb. It is up to the new "think tank" at Impossible Industries to help save him.

1–08: Mid-Life Chrysalis (Written by: Jackson Publick & Doc Hammer) – The Monarch sends Dr. Girlfriend undercover in order to seduce Dr. Venture and inject him with a body-altering serum. Meanwhile, Brock becomes depressed over the expiration of his license to kill, but the brothers help him cram for his government exam. Dr. Venture would later ask H.E.L.P.E.R to kill him giving a a reference to the movie The Fly.

1–09: Are You There God? It's Me, Dean (Written by: Doc Hammer) – As The Monarch tortures the Venture family above the Amazon River, Dean Venture suddenly comes down with a slight case of acute testicular torsion. According to an addendum to Article 47 of The Unusual Torture Act (a.k.a. "Rusty's Law") created by The Guild of Calamitous Intent in 1969, The Monarch has to let them go for two days or until Dean is fully cured. The Monarch keeps Brock Samson and Hank Venture as collateral until then. Master Billy and Dr. White are hired to heal Dean. Meanwhile, Brock helps The Monarch celebrate his birthday by overtaking his Lair.

1–10: Tag Sale, You're It! (Written by: Doc Hammer) – Once again short on money, Dr. Venture unloads some of his father's inventions in a yard sale that attracts scientists and villains alike. Meanwhile, the Monarch tries to resist the temptation of wreaking havoc while inside "the belly of the beast".

1–11: Past Tense (Written by: Jackson Publick) – Attending a funeral for a former college buddy named Mike Sorayama who died, Dr. Venture, Brock Samson, Baron Underbheit and Mr. White get gassed and sent to a chamber via Mike's coffin. The Venture brothers get the original Team Venture to help them find their father and bodyguard. The kidnapper of the four was who appeared to be Mike Sorayama. The original Team Venture broke into Sorayama's prison and beats up Sorayama's helper robots, Lesliebots, who look like Sorayama's one love, Leslie Cohen. Brock escapes from the chamber and beats up the original Team Venture, who dressed into the Lesliebots' outfits for disguise. It turned out that the Mike Sorayama who was torturing them was actually a robot made by the dead Mike Sorayama.

1–12: Trial of the Monarch (Written by: Doc Hammer) – One of The Monarch's henchmen makes a biography of The Monarch. The Monarch discovers the book and says is full of lies and it starts an argument with Dr. Girlfriend about her photos in the book with other men. In a state of furor he calls her a whore and drives Dr. Girlfriend out of his cocoon lair and his life. She winds up at The Phantom Limb's house after walking around in the rain. When the Monarch comes searching for Dr. Girlfriend, The Phantom Limb decides to set up The Monarch for a crime that he did not commit and calls the police (who are in the Guild's pocket). During the trial, mind-reading Dr. Orpheus finds out that The Monarch is innocent. The Phantom Limb then orders members of The Guild to freeze everyone in the courtroom and put a level three-memory wipe on them. The real plan of the Phantom Limb and the Guild is revealed when Guild operatives capture the prosecutor, Tiny Attorney (who is a parody of Total Recall's mutant leader Kuato). Once everyone is unfrozen and Dr. Orpheus mentally swayed, he declares The Monarch guilty. Orpheus's words ring so loudly that the court finds The Monarch guilty, too.

1–13: Return to Spider-Skull Island (Written by: Jackson Publick & Doc Hammer) – Dr. Venture's recurring womb nightmares turn out to be something far more sinister--he has a twin brother who was engulfed by him when both were fetuses, and, having been taken out during surgery, wants vengeance! Jonas Jr. secretly outfits himself in a robot body, knocks Brock out and ties him to his car, leaving him free to hunt down Dr. Venture. Meanwhile, Hank and Dean run off over their mistaken belief that their father is pregnant and are taken into the Monarch's 'scared straight' program for wannabe super-villains, with Dr. Orpheus trailing them, attempting to keep them out of trouble. The Monarch talks the boys into going back to their old life. Brock, meanwhile, has H.E.L.P.eR. drive the car over to Dr. Venture, who finally seems to be getting his from Jonas Jr. (who claims the Venture empire is rightfully his). The car smashes into Jonas Jr. and knocks him out of his body, revealing he has the body of an infant. Dr. Venture keeps Brock from killing his twin and the two basically agree to negotiate a peace. Dr. Orpheus conveniently comes by at that point, telling of what happened to the boys. Soon all seems well, as Brock, Jonas Jr., Dr. Orpheus, and Dr. Venture trail behind the boys in their hoverbikes. The Monarch's two henchmen meanwhile come by and ask if they can find both a hair parlor and ammo for a gun, but the fat henchman, showing off the gun, accidentally shoots Hank and Dean and kills them.¹ This is the series' first season finale.

This is a spoof of the shocking ending of the movie Easy Rider wherein the two young protagonists are shot off their motorbikes by two rednecks in a pickup truck.

Special: A Very Venture Christmas (Written by: Christopher McCulloch) – A Christmas Special in which Dr. Venture throws a party for many of his friends (mostly all of the characters from previous episodes, such as the Original Team Venture, Steve Sommers and his Sasquatch, etc.), but the party goes awry when Dean and Hank accidentally release Krampus from Dr. Orpheus's spell book. Chaos and abuse (mostly toward Dr. Venture) ensue. Meanwhile, The Monarch has hatched yet another plan to kill Dr. Venture, this time, involving a nativity scene booby-trapped with C4 explosive. The events in this episode take place after "Ice Station Impossible" but before "The Trial of the Monarch".

Home Releases

Warner Home Video and Adult Swim may release the first season on DVD by the end of 2005.

External links

• The Official Venture Brothers Website
• Jackson Publick's Venture Bros. Livejournal
• Adult Swim – Venture Bros. Website
• Scrotal Safety Commission(A Satirical Site on Testicular Torsion)